Talk
by letusrejoicify
Summary: A series of talks surrounding Emma and Regina's... development.
1. Kathryn

Kathryn stirred her coffee slowly and, setting the spoon aside, brought it up to her nose. Gently, she breathed in and smiled.

Today was going to be a relaxing day. Her first in a while. Work had been difficult, and she and Frederick had been trying their hardest to settle into their new home, and finally, it seemed, everything had settled down.

Sighing contentedly, she moved to her new chair and placed the warm mug on its mat. Her book was out, resting on the desk and waiting to be opened. Kathryn almost giggled with the delight of it all, letting her body fall until her bottom met a squishy cushion. Finally.

_Knock. Knock, knock._

She groaned. And, with a longing look at her book, dragged her body up and to the door.

"Uh, hi..." She looked confused at the woman stood looking rather shocked before her. "Regina? What're you... ahem- Hello."

Kathryn hadn't spoken to Regina in a long time. When the curse broke, and she remembered who she was, truly- well. It was easy to forget brief friendships when, during them, you weren't you in the first place.

"I had sex with Emma."

She opened her mouth and then closed it. Nodding hesitantly, she watched the heavy-breathed woman attempt to gather herself. "It's nice to see you too." Kathryn said eventually, cautiously. It's strange to think she was friends with the Evil Queen once.

Regina walked past her and into the house. Well, she thought, she was friends with someone once who was quite obviously no longer the Evil Queen.

"So I guess you're coming in then." She said, and closed the door before turning to a pacing Regina.

"I didn't know what I was doing really. I mean, one minute she was stood in my living room spewing idiotic after idiotic apology at me and the next I was grabbing her stupid damn face and putting it..." She gestured wildly to her mouth. "_On_... me. And..." She took a breath looking around the room she was in, as if only now realising her surroundings. "Is there anybody else here?"

"No, just you, me and my new best-seller book." Kathryn said. Then she breathed in and scrunched her brows together. "You're talking about Emma Swan, aren't you?"

"Yes! Have you been listening to anything I've said?!"

Kathryn looked at her. "Well you haven't been listening to anything I've said."

"I know!" Regina paused and then sighed, moving quickly to sit on the sofa. "I know. And I'm sorry to barge in on you with this. I just... the only other people I'm even moderately close with are Rumplestiltskin, who I'm sure would love the sight of me like this and Snow White, who I'm not so sure would be happy about her former step-mother having sexual relations with her daughter. "

Kathryn, who had now sat back down on her chair, frowned and nodded. "Yeah, I can see where you're coming from. But if it makes you feel any better that whole family dynamic thing you've got going on is pretty screwed up anyway."

"Yes. Thank you for that, Kathryn." Regina said pointedly, to which Kathryn chuckled. She wanted to say _thank_ _yourself for setting a curse that stopped you from aging_ but decided that was probably a bad thing to mention right now. Regina put her head in her hand. "I don't know what I'm going to do. That woman is infuriating. She brought back somebody from the past and tore apart my first real relationship in years and now I'm..." She scowled. "_Lusting_ after her."

"Yep. Screwed up." Kathryn said, and looked at Regina's despaired face. She nudged her knee playfully. "So... how was she?"

Regina made a sound akin to a whimper, moving her elbow to the arm of the sofa and leaning the side of her head on her hand. "Exceptional." She said sadly, leaning over to the mug of coffee and drinking it. "Oh, what do I do?"

"Well for starters," Kathryn began, taking the mug away from Regina. "Stop all this worrying business. It isn't you. So, you had sex with some woman- "

"The mother of my child and former enemy who, may I mention, I tried to murder."

Kathryn narrowed her eyes, pressing her lips together and nodding. Yes, that could be a problem. She sipped her coffee. "But she had sex with you too, so maybe she doesn't mind. And she ruined your happy ending so that kinda balances some things out." She turned to Regina, who met her eyes, and relaxed her face into a more serious expression. "Okay, listen. As long as you don't make this into some weird, obstacle filled romance novel-esque thing, it's not gonna hurt anybody. Talk to her about this, find out where you're both at, what you want to do from this point and deal with it. If you get together and you're happy, fine, good, everybody else can deal with it. And if you decide one time is one time, forget about it and move on. Stop freaking out. Sex happens. Feelings happen. But you're not going to sort it out sitting here and drinking my coffee."

Regina blinked.

Kathryn breathed out a huge sigh and sipped at her drink.

"You're right." Regina said eventually, a new calm about her. She stood, straightening her back (and her shirt) and picked up her bag. "Thank you, Kathryn. I apologise for the inconvenience."

She smiled warily, then proudly at herself. "Yeah, you're welcome Regina." Following the Mayor to the door, Kathryn opened it.

Regina stepped out, and paused a moment, turning back to the blonde. "If you ever-"

"If I ever sleep with somebody who ruined my life you'll be the first person I go to." Kathryn smirked, and Regina smiled back.

"Okay. Good afternoon, Kathryn." She turned, and walked away from Kathryn's home.

Kathryn shut the door and, leaning on it momentarily, smiled softly. Then her eyes wandered to her book, her face lighting up. She moved away from the door, and to the inviting chair in front of her.

(But not before turning the lock, of course.)


	2. Snow

"Hi mom."

Snow turned, a little startled. "Hi there." She said, breath catching a little at the term she wasn't quite used to (though every time she heard it, she felt a warmth she was loving more and more). Emma, who was avoiding eye contact with her mother, held her hands tightly in her pockets whilst she remained near to the door on the other side of the classroom.

Snow placed the jacket she held on the desk in front of her.

"Everything alright, Emma?" She asked tentatively, stepping forward. Her daughter looked up at her, seeming to relax a little when she saw the reassuring smile that seemed to be second nature to Snow herself.

"Yeah." She said softly. "Sorta... I, uh- well." She turned to the door behind her, closing it before looking back up to Snow. " I wanted to talk to you about something."

Snow's brows pulled together. She wasn't sure whether to be worried or ecstatic that Emma actually wanted to speak to her about something. But then, she was never one-hundred-per-cent sure about much when it came to Emma.

Immediately, Snow pulled up two of the children's seats and gestured to one. Emma sat down on it, and for a moment shifted uncomfortably on its small frame. Looking at her hands, she breathed deeply before nodding to herself and turning her head towards Snow.

"Okay." She said.

"...Okay." Snow laughed nervously. "What is it?"

"I have feelings."

"...Yes."

"For somebody."

Snow's eyes narrowed and she smiled in confusion. "Um... Okay. I think we all were a little aware of that."

Emma paused a second before opening her mouth. "Oh. _Oh._ No, not... not Hook. Well, Hook, yes, but- well. More than Hook."

Snow stopped herself from leaning forward or smiling like a madwoman. Sure, she was warming to the pirate, but it wasn't a bad thing to be happy that there was somebody else in the picture, was it? And, God, Emma was actually talking about this with her. It was a fine day to be Snow White.

"I see. So who is it then?" She patted Emma's hand gently.

"You see, that's what I wanted to talk to you about. This person isn't exactly..." She gestured rigidly, scrunching up her face. "...male."

At the word, both women sighed with relief. "Oh, honey... that's... that's fine. That's better than fine. I thought you were going to say they were... married or- well. That doesn't matter." Snow shook her head and looked at her daughter, smiling. "But your happiness means everything and if you find that in a woman... then good. Great."

Emma smiled from the side of her mouth. "Good."

After a beat of silence, Snow leaned back onto her small chair. "It's a little surprising, though."

Emma chuckled. "You're telling me. God, she's..." She sighed. "She's amazing. And I don't even know if she feels the same way. But- but that doesn't matter if this isn't okay with you."

"But I already-"

"I know. I know. It's just- It's. Who she is... is..." The silence basked around them for a moment. And then Emma spoke quickly. "Regina."

Snow's brows rose high and her body froze a moment.

"Mom? Are you... okay?"

Snow's mouth opened with a great effort, though her brows remained high on her forehead. "I'm fine." She said, her voice cracking, the high pitch it changed to making Emma wince. She tried again. "Fine." And her voice came out loud and forceful. Instead she nodded with a strange smile on her mouth.

"I see this is a little unexpected. I guess I just thought since you two were getting on so much-"

"We are." Snow said, her voice somewhat back to a normal register. "But you do know she's essentially your step-grandmother."

"Yes but... but when she was, she wasn't Regina. She was the Evil Queen. Who, sure, murdered and tortured but she's not like that anymore. You and I both know it."

"Honey, she tried to kill you."

"But she didn't! And- And..." Emma closed her eyes. "Look, I know it's fucked up. But she's also the mother of my kid. And somebody who's taught me a lot about who I am. And technically she's not even that much older than me."

"Do you just have a type? Like, we've got a thief, a pirate, and an Evil Queen here." Emma turned to face a now calmer Snow. They laughed softly together and shared a small moment in quietness.

"I just... I need to tell her how I feel. But I can't do that if this is too weird for you." She looked up sincerely, and Snow's heart melted a little.

"What's our family if it isn't a little weird?" She eventually said quietly. The grin on Emma's face broke out slowly but wide, and Snow couldn't help but smile back.

"Oh, thank you so much. Thank you." Emma leapt up, hugging her mother tightly. "You're the best." She said as she swiftly made her way to the door, closing it behind her.

Snow breathed out and leant her head forward, rubbing her temples with her fingers. She'd never get used to this dynamic. But, she supposed as she stood to pick up her jacket and bags, she could get used to being the best.


End file.
